Shields to Defend Against Daley

EliteXC Vice President Jared Shaw announced that current EliteXC welterweight champion, Jake Shields, will be facing Cage Rage welterweight champion, Paul Daley, at the promotion’s third CBS event. Both fighters have agreed to face off on the October 4th card, and have contracts in hand.

Shields just won the vacant title by defeating Nick Thompson on EliteXC’s second CBS promotion, “Unfinished Business,” last month. It is the first significant title that the top tier 170-pounder has ever obtained.

Daley has long been thought of to be Jake Shields’ biggest threat for the EliteXC welterweight title, but the fight has never materialized even though ProElite has had both fighters in its stable the entire time. Cage Rage, like EliteXC, is owned by ProElite, Inc.

“Jake Shields and Paul Daley have a date on Oct. 4,” Shaw told MMAWeekly.com. “Both fighters have verbally agreed. Bout agreements are out and we’re just waiting for them to come back in.

“Unlike some others, these are two guys that I trust their word,” he said of the verbal commitments from both champions.

Last week, Shields expressed his disapointment in the level of talent that EliteXC was offering him for his firt title defense. He also mentioned the possibility moving up a weight class to fight against a top tier middleweight in another promotion. Shields would not confirm what organization that was, but many thought it would be Affliction since Matt Lindland’s opponenet, Vitor Belfort, was forced to pull out due to injury.